Reference Materials Resources

Biographical DictionaryThis dictionary covers more than 28,000 notable men and women who have shaped our world from ancient times to the present day. Search by birth years, death years, positions held, professions, literary and artistic works, achievements, and other keywords.

ExploratoriumAn online musuem with a strong science focus. This site does live webcasts with demonstrations.

FactCheck.orgFactCheck.org is a nonpartisan, nonprofit project of the Annenberg Public Policy Center. It monitors the accuracy of statements made by U.S. political players, analyzing debates, speeches, ads and more.

HandSpeakA practical sign language online dictionary. Learn to sign the alphabet, numbers and words in American Sign Language. This site also gives information on deaf culture and languages, and it offers some stories in sign language.

Information Please AlmanacA site that's been providing authoritative answers to all kinds of questions since 1938. Its object is to provide reliable, factual information on all topics of interest.

Khan AcademyKhan Academy produces free educational videos, all of which can be streamed online. Subjects include many branches of math and science, economics and finance, and even history.

NetLingoWelcome to NetLingo, an online Internet language dictionary! The dictionary contains hundreds of words and definitions that describe the technology and community world of the Web. Also includes a pocket dictionary and "smileys" page.

Oxford Complete Works of William ShakespeareThis 1914 Oxford edition of the Complete Works of William Shakespeare ranks among the most authoritative published this century. The 37 plays, 154 sonnets and miscellaneous verse constitute the literary cornerstone of Western civilization.

Refdesk.comThis site has links to for any sort of research, including biographies, science, internet, history, etc. It even has a link to the postal addresses of politicians.

Atlapedia OnlineContains full color physical and political maps as well as key facts and statistics on countries of the world. Search for facts and figures on geography, climate, people, religion, language, history, economy and more for each individual country.

CIA World FactbookMaps for every country of the world, and huge downloadable maps of the world to print out

Vocabulary.comLook up vocabulary words or learn new ones with Home Vocabulary. Improve your vocabulary with their many word games and puzzles. Very useful when studying for your SATs!

YourDictionary.comThe largest web of online dictionaries. Includes vocabulary aids (such as acronym, homophone and rhyming dictionaries); multilingual dictionaries for over 190 languages; and specialty dictionaries by subject (such as art, literature and sports).

Encyclopedia.comThe Internet's premier free encyclopedia! Includes more than 14,000 articles from The Concise Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, Third Edition for quick and useful information on almost any topic.

The Encyclopedia MythicaAn encyclopedia on mythology, folklore and legend. Learn about gods and goddesses, supernatural beings and legendary creatures and monsters from all over the world.

Aphorisms Galore!Find witty sayings by author or category (including love and hate, men and women, success and failure, life and death), read background info, and contribute your own favorite sayings.

Bartlett's Familiar QuotationsJohn Bartlett's classic "collection of passages, phrases, and proverbs traced to their sources in ancient and modern literature." Search and browse over 9,000 quotations from hundreds of authors.

Bartleby CompanyThe preeminent Internet publisher of literature, reference and verse providing students, researchers and the intellectually curious with unlimited access to books and information on the web, free of charge.

BibliomaniaFree World Literature online with more than 800 Classic Texts, Study Guides and Research materials

Children's Literature Web GuideSearch for information on authors and illustrators, such as Dr. Seuss, Lewis Carroll, and C.S. Lewis, as well as characters and places from children's books, such as Winnie the Pooh and the land of Oz. Also includes lists for recommended books.

Internet Public LibraryAn exhaustive collection of online resources and information. Save a trip to the library and go online.

Library SpotLists of links to libraries and other helpful resources, from books to business.

Project GutenbergThe Project Gutenberg Philosophy is to make information, books and other materials available to the general public in forms a vast can easily read, use, quote, and search.